More than ever, the current challenges on the labor market call for a policy that promotes resilience and flexibility. All parties are challenged: companies to find appropriately trained and mobile workforces, workers to develop skills relevant to the labor market, and policymakers to provide for employment and social policy frameworks that encourage access for all to the labor market placing employment security over job security. The OECD’s goal should be to give guidance on ways to create more resilient and adaptable labor markets and jobs, within the context of the over-riding goal of enhancing productivity.

“The focus on employment security should serve to improve the resilience of the entire labor force and also facilitate the ability of workers to successfully progress among or between jobs”, said Ronnie Goldberg, Chair of the BIAC Employment, Labor and Social Affairs Committee and Senior Counsel at the United States Council for International Business (USCIB).

Paris, 14 December 2015 – BIAC welcomes the successful conclusion of COP21, which is a key step towards addressing the global climate challenge. The Paris Agreement provides an essential framework for action that will require the full engagement of all major economies. “We have transitioned from 11 to 98 percent coverage of global greenhouse gas emissions and, with the 5- year review periods, we are for the first time focused on the future with an approach that can actually reduce net global emissions”, noted Russel Mills, Chair of the BIAC Energy and Environment Committee.

Paris, 10 December 2015 – Corruption is a major obstacle to economic and social development around the world and adds considerable risk to doing business globally. On the occasion of the International Anti-Corruption Day this week, the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD (BIAC) organized a roundtable with the OECD Working Group on Bribery, calling for close private sector involvement in an ambitious OECD strategy to fight corruption and bribery.

Paris, 6 November 2015 - At the 3rd OECD Global Forum on Value Added Tax (VAT) and Goods and Services Tax (GST) held in Paris today, BIAC welcomed the endorsement of the completed OECD International VAT/GST Guidelines and called for their consistent implementation globally to remove VAT/GST obstacles to cross-border trade in services and intangibles.

Bernhard Welschke, Secretary General of BIAC, said that “The Guidelines are a milestone for the global business community and a foundation for further work on the removal of obstacles to international trade and investment created by globally inconsistent VAT/GST rules”.

The Global Forum brought together senior officials from over 100 delegations representing governments, international organizations, business representatives and academia to discuss progress made in the development of the International VAT/GST Guidelines. The Guidelines were endorsed by governments as an International Standard to address issues of double taxation and unintended non-taxation resulting from inconsistencies in the application of VAT to international trade.

Paris, 5 October 2015 – “The BEPS project needed to happen, and the OECD and G20 should be congratulated both for their hard work and for achieving high-level consensus across many issues”, said BIAC Tax Committee Chair Will Morris today on the occasion of the long-awaited release of the OECD’s 2015 BEPS deliverables package. “Moreover this high-level consensus was achieved while working to an exceptionally ambitious timetable.”

“Business does still have concerns that some of the recommendations may lead to double taxation of income, and many important details remain to be worked out. We look forward to working with the OECD and G20 on those”, Morris added. “Nevertheless, BIAC has always acknowledged that modifications were required to international tax rules in order to keep pace with rapid globalization, and we believe that the broad direction of many of the BEPS recommendations will help with this. But this next – implementation – phase will be crucial.”

Istanbul, 5 October 2015 – “Mobilizing private investment that supports sustainable economic growth should be a priority for governments around the world”, said BIAC Secretary General Bernhard Welschke at the OECD/G20 Global Forum on International Investment today. “In the global business community, there is a new sense of urgency for governments to refrain from conflicting requirements for investors and adverse measures such as the forced localization of data.”

Paris, 9 September 2015 – At the B20 Conference in Ankara (Turkey) on 3-5 September, BIAC Secretary-General Bernhard Welschke and Chair of the BIAC Taxation and Fiscal Policy Committee Will Morris welcomed the B20 recommendation on taxation and BEPS which emphasizes the need to encourage trade and investment flows especially in relation to infrastructure and cross border Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Paris, 1 July 2015 – “China and the OECD need each other now more than ever,” said Joerg Wuttke, Chair of the BIAC China Task Force, commenting on the visit of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to the OECD Headquarters in Paris. “As Chinese companies ramp-up overseas investment, and as OECD-based companies continue to sow investments in China, a new and enhanced program for China-OECD cooperation should benefit both parties” he added.

Paris, 30 June 2015 – “BIAC considers the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) as an essential instrument for companies to navigate markets, to reduce risk, and to follow good practice in responsible business conduct”, said BIAC Secretary General Bernhard Welschke following the launch of a new BIAC publication for business on the MNE Guidelines.

Paris/Ankara, 15 June 2015 – “For SMEs to benefit more fully from global value chains, urgent actions are needed to improve the coordination of financial regulations, strengthen access to financing and skills, and maximize the sharing of information through digital platforms,” said Bernhard Welschke, BIAC Secretary-General, commenting today on the release of a BIAC-B20 Turkey special publication.
Faced with the slowest post-crisis global investment recovery since the early 1970s, there is a pressing need to unlock growth, investment and jobs. However, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – which account for the majority of employment and over half of value-added in OECD countries – have struggled to access the financing they require to participate in and across world markets as banks have deleveraged to meet new regulatory requirements.